In photos: India's First Cherry Blossom Festival

On Monday, Meghalaya started to celebrate India's first cherry Blossom festival which is originally widely celebrated in Japan.

The Cherry Blossom Festival, popularly known as Sakura Festival in Japan, is held in April every year. Prunus cerasoides, or the Wild Himalayan cherry tree blooms in autumn. The tree is native to the Himalayan region and grows abundantly in Shillong. It was in the 1980s when the forest department planted them for aesthetic reasons and since then it grows in abundance.

Meghalaya will celebrate mass flowering with night walks along Shillong's ward's Lake, a popular tourist spot under pink and white cherry blossoms.

Food festivals, fashion shows, archery contests, rock concerts and other cultural events are also part of the festival.